Excessive face licking

When we first got our pup she would give a gentle lick to our faces when she saw us after being left alone for a while. Now it seems constant and very... um forceful and a lot of it, she'll whimper until we allow her to. Is this a result of something we've done wrong or is it normal?

I don't know the answer I'm afraid but our dog does the same thing, it also includes the occassional accidental nip on the end of our noses. It is affectionate but sometimes it is a little bit too much, especially if he ate recently!

We have recently got a new puppy and the licking from him on us has rapidly decreased, as if he is now transferring that to the new pup.

Its not something I would encourage, dogs mouths are full of bacteria and you never know what / where they have been licking before they lick you face

Try distraction with either a foodie treat or toy

It is a sign of affection. Although, it is primarily a submissive display and can also be triggered by stress. Obviously, I don't know the full details to make the right conclusion, but I would suggest that when the dog licks you, just pick the dog up and put it on the floor without saying anything to encourage it as a sort of game.

Just keep repeating and see if the dog stops. If not, I'd recommend using the similar trick used for bite inhibition. Say no calmly and strongly when the licking becomes excessive. If the dog still licks after this, place the pup on the floor and walk away without saying anything.

This will teach the dog that excessive licking equals you leaving and that's not what the dog will want.

Give it a try over a few days and see if this improves, let me know if I can help any further!

The only worry with giving a treat is that as opposed to serving as a distraction, it will most likely serve as a positive reinforcement. The dog will associate licking of the face equals a treat and will repeat the behaviour for a further reward.

If your pup nips too strongly, give a yelp of pain or say NO! rather strongly. If the pup continues, do like I said above, place the pup on the floor and walk out of the room.

Every dog that has been socialised with his litter for 8 weeks will understand bite inhibition after learning with his siblings. When a dog bites another dog too hard, the yelp of pain will tell the biter that he is being too hard.

Every dog should be taught bite inhibition to stop problems in the future if dog thinks it is perfectly acceptable to bite.

None of ours ever did. They learnt very quickly that licking was a no/no, much better fun to play or eat the distraction. As pup gets older all you need to say is "No lick" if they are persistent. Have never had that problem tho, possibly because didnt encourage it.